Against All Odds
by angel-death-dealer
Summary: Anna never died, but now Dracula is back to finish of the Valerious bloodline. When Gabriel returns to Transylvania, will he find out more than he counted on knowing? And why is Anna so sick? COMPLETED
1. Where's The Good In Goodbye?

"So I guess this is goodbye then."

Anna's Romanian accent cut through the air like a knife. Practically the whole of Transylvania had turned up to watch Van Helsing and Carl leave, to return to Rome. Carl, having already said his goodbyes to Anna, stood by the carriage that Rome had sent, driven by another friar older than Carl. Anna stood on the steps of the well in the centre of the village, much like she had the first time she had seen him, the irony of it, she thought, the place I first saw him will now become the place I will last see him. Gabriel stood beside her, one step below her, but he still towered over her by a good few inches, making her look like a scared little girl to the rest of the villagers.

"I guess so." He muttered.

He hadn't wanted to leave. It broke his heart to have to go back to Rome and leave her. She had miraculously survived his unwilling attack as a werewolf, but it had made her physically weakened, confined to her bed for a fortnight. But Gabriel had been there by her side through the whole procedure, getting her through the pain. They had spent another two weeks together after that, once she had fully recovered, just wandering the village and the woods, now that it was free from threats such as vampires and werewolves. Carl, however, received a cable from Rome a few days ago, stating that the Cardinal wanted him to return immediately, and that there was a carriage coming to collect them both already.

Anna had cried when Gabriel had told her this, but she didn't do it when he was around. She understood he needed to return. After all, it was as he had said 'his job, his life, his curse' and all that wasn't going to change because of her, he probably wasn't allowed to fall in love.

The village was silent except for their occasional comments. The friar on top of the carriage was getting impatient waiting for Gabriel to say goodbye already, but Carl explained everything briefly to him and he soon shut up. Anna needed to break the silence before it broke her heart. She moved her gaze from the stony ground to the tall handsome man before her.

"I'll never forget the time we had together." She promised, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill over her proud figure, which Gabriel had notice, now consisted of pale cheeks, and sagging shoulders.

"Neither will I." He didn't know what to say to make the pain disappear. How could he make this easier for the both of them? "Anna, you know I have to do this, there is no other way." She nodded, looking deep into his eyes. "And you know I will always love you, don't you?" She nodded and brought a hand to her face to wipe a stray tear away as she whispered "I love you too."

Time was always against them, Gabriel didn't want to be travelling through the forest bordering Rome at night, as it held its own monsters and secrets, both him and Anna needed this. He moves up a step and gathered her in his arms, a final hug. Within a few moments he could feel her tears dampening his clothes against his chest, and he smoothed her hair under his chin. "I don't want you to go." She wept, despite the proud authority she was trying to uphold.

She had always been seen as incapable as falling in love. She remembered seeing her brother, Velkan, with his favourite lady, Karla, and questioning his antics with her, and how he would tell her that one day, a handsome man would break her icy fortress and capture her heart. You were right brother, she whispered in her mind, he has captured it, and I will not let him return it.

"I don't want to go either," He admitted.

"Will you come back?"

It was a question that had been running through everyone's mind for the past few days. Gabriel glanced over at Carl, looking for an answer, but the friar shook his head sorrowfully. He wasn't going back. "I'm sorry Anna." He said, near to tears himself. How he wanted her to stop crying, to pick her up, carry her across the village to her home and just lay with her on her bed, soothing her tears.

He pulled away and said one final time "I love you, Anna, never forget that." And then he turned his back on the only woman he had ever loved, walking towards the carriage and climbing in beside Carl. As the carriage started moving he watched out of the small window as Anna buried her face in her hands and villagers cleared a path for her as she ran blindly to her home.

His heart was tearing at the sight. He wished the pain would go away, but no matter what he thought about to distract himself, everything led back to her. He sighed as he closed his eyes and leaned back against the cushioned seats. He was vaguely aware of Carl's comforting voice, "You did the right thing Van Helsing" but it didn't matter. He would never forgive himself for what he just did. Dracula had taken her whole family, but then he showed up and had someone again, she had fallen in love with him and he had loved her back, but then he had just left her, alone again.


	2. Deep Cuts The Night

A few weeks later, Anna went downstairs only to get a drink of water. The days before she had locked herself in her room and refused to come out. She would go back she had a drink. It was a dizzy sensation that swept over her made her stop in the doorway. A woman wearing simple clothes, coincidently the woman who had cared for Anna and her brother when their parents were away often, watched her as she stood still, her eyes closed and a hand on her head.

"Miss Anna, are you feeling all right?"

Anna opened her eyes at the woman, her dizziness fading. "I am fine, Rachel, do not worry about me." This was a lie, and the aging woman knew this. Now nearing fifty years old, she knew nearly everything about the twenty three year old princess, including all about the battle of emotions raging in her heart at the present day.

Anna drank her water and then started to return to her room. But an itch in her chest made her cough again and again, until she was short of breath. Rachel came up beside her and rubbed her back to try and ease the coughs but it was to no avail. Anna found it impossible to cease the coughs, and thus making it near impossible to breathe. After a few moments of battling with her body, Anna gave into the struggle and let the darkness take her. Rachel could do nothing as the young woman she loved like a daughter collapsed in exhaustion.

**I know that this is a short one but I couldn't really add the next chapter on to it without making it too long. I don't own Anna, or Gabriel or any of the other Van Helsing characters that make later appearances. However I do own Rachel. Send feedback to **


	3. Edge Of A Broken Heart

Time passed slowly for Gabriel. Every day he fought new creatures, keeping busy to avoid the scene of Anna's sobbing face flashing through his mind. It pained him that he wasn't there with her. The Cardinal asked about her when he returned and he had bluntly told him what he thought of returning.

"Ah, Van Helsing, Nice journey?" The Cardinal had greeted when he entered his office as soon as they had arrived at the Vatican City. Gabriel's face was sombre and his eyes showed pain and also, amazingly, love.

"_Why? Why did you have to bring be back here?" He demanded. The monster hunter looked like he was about to cry if he didn't stop himself constantly by reminding himself it was not the time._

"_You are needed here Van Helsing."_

"_I was needed in Romania." _

"_And you did your job, it is time to return now." The Cardinal said, "What happened Van Helsing? What changed you in Transylvania?" So Gabriel told him everything, the fights, the battle of emotions, Frankenstein, Anna...._

"_I love her Cardinal! I love her so much that it hurts, and you dragged me away from her! I had to watch her tears as she ran into her home crying when we left. It was me who saw the side to her that she never let the villagers see, it was me she opened up to. And more importantly it was me who never left her side when she was injured and needed me!" Gabriel realised there was tears burning in his eyes as he screamed his emotions at his father figure. "And now, she's all alone. Again. Because of this job."_

"_When you regain you memory you will be thankful for this." The Cardinal said, not reacting to Van Helsing's bitter mood._

"_The past is over. She is my future." _

"_Not any more."_

So that was it. For Gabriel, he was never allowed to see her again. So the hunting continued. Day after day he watched a sunset, wondering if somewhere across the Adriatic Sea, an Eastern European princess by the name of Anna Valerious might be doing the same thing, holding the same longing in her heart as she though about the little 'what-ifs' that crossed his mind whenever he was confronted by a memory of her.

He had been called into the Cardinal's office for some unknown reason. He remembered the day well. January 6th. It was during a week when he was supposed to have been not working, but instead he was helping around the church, because otherwise he found himself lying on his bed staring at the ceiling, thinking of Anna yet again.

The Cardinal sat opposite him at his large oak wood desk. "A letter arrived for you this morning Van Helsing." Gabriel looked up at Jinette. He had never received a letter from anyone in his memory. "A letter from Romania." The Cardinal showed him the piece of paper that he had found on the steps of Rome that morning. Gabriel took it from him and read it aloud.

"Mr Van Helsing.

My name is Rachel Weaver, I am handmaiden to Princess Anna. I have raised her from the age of birth after her mother's passing and I write to you in the understanding that she needs you more than ever. Since you left, she has fallen apart. I have never seen her so careless about every thing she does, I have to force her to eat a meal once a day, for that is all she can manage in her weakened state. A week before I wrote this letter, the Princess collapsed in exhaustion after a painful fit of coughing, which she could not stop. Since then, she has not had the strength to get out of bed, not from injury as not so long ago, but from an unknown illness that our doctor cannot treat. She sleeps mostly, and when she wakes it is because of uncontrollable nightmares, in which she arises screaming and sobbing, every time calling out your name. In her sleep, she begs for you to come to her. I know not of your whereabouts, but she keeps repeating 'Vatican' in her sleep. I hope this letter reaches you. I fear she will not live through the month without you beside her, for without you; she has no reason to hold onto life. Please return to her, Mr Van Helsing. She needs you, and I need her. I cannot bear to see her in such a state. She has deprived herself of love and happiness since she lost her mother and family. Yet, I believe in you, she may finally find the strength and security she needs to rebuild her life.

Rachel Weaver."

Gabriel's face was streaming with silent tears when he finished reading the letter. The Cardinal looked sympathetically at him. Gabriel's mind was in shreds, and his heart shattered.

"Van Helsing I – "

"Now do you see?" Gabriel said, not wiping the tears from his face, half from sadness, half from anger. "If I hadn't left, she would be fine! She could be dying, and if I had stayed there this never would have happened. This is why I have to go back. I need her, but right now she needs me a lot more. I'll leave immediately." He started walking to the door but the Cardinal stopped him at the doorway.

"Wait, Van Helsing." The younger man looked up at his surrogate father. "Take Carl with you, and as much medical supplies as you wish. I hope you can make her as happy as you have made me proud. I shall pray for her safety until you arrive."

Van Helsing nodded a thanks and then left, collecting a confused Carl from the armoury and towards the stables where he mounted his faithful stallion, Lyca, and together they rode of into the distance to save Anna before it was too late.


	4. Hard Times Come Easy

The ride to Transylvania took two days, and Gabriel didn't rest for a moment, which was difficult for Carl, his horse, Celi, to keep up with Gabriel and Lyca. Gabriel's mind was focused on Anna, the thought of seeing her again giving hope, but that letter he received might have been written months ago.

They rode into the centre of the village and a woman with short grey hair came up to them both with a look of disbelief on her aging face. "Mr Van Helsing. Rachel Weaver has been searching for you."

"Can you take me to her?" He asked the old woman kindly. Together, followed by an out of breath Carl, they raced as quickly as they could to the Valerious Manor. Down a corridor, they were almost at Anna's room, and they were met by another old woman, but this one looked at him with pain in her grey eyes.

"Van Helsing. I thought you would never make it." Gabriel looked towards Anna's room. "You may want to prepare yourself. She's in the middle of another nightmare I'm afraid, a nasty one at that."

"Is she in there?" Rachel nodded and opened the door. Gabriel watched as she entered. He followed her and his stomach dropped at the sight.

Anna was lying in her bed, her arms lay over the quilt but she was still covered in sweat that glistened over her pale skin. Her forehead was creased and her breathing was scarily erratic. Rachel knelt beside the bed and placed her hands on the young woman's shoulders, whispering words of comforts as she began to cry out.

"Gabriel! No, no, Gabriel, come back, don't leave me again! Someone help!" Anna's voice screamed through the room, tears leaking through her unopened eyes. Her body jolted around on the bed, held still as possible by Rachel.

"Calm down, Anna, You must lay still, everything will be fine." After a few minutes of struggling, she lay still, and for a moment, Gabriel feared the worst as Rachel put a hand on Anna's forehead. He moved to sit behind Rachel, but on the edge of Anna's beside.

Anna's eyes opened slowly, revealing glistening brown orbs, clouded by nausea. "Rachel." She muttered.

"Yes, Miss, I am here. Do not worry. You had another nightmare. I brought someone here to see you Miss Anna. Someone you have missed terribly." Rachel moved from Anna's side, revealing Gabriel sitting beside her.

"Anna," He said softly, and instantly, his presence waved peace over her. She gazed at him, lost for a moment, and then sat upright as quickly as she could, throwing herself in her lovers arms, sobbing hard as his arms wrapped tightly around her.

"You came back." She said, half crying, but smiling as she pulled away and looked up at him. "You're really here." He kissed her forehead tenderly and helped her to lie back again.

"I'm so sorry Anna, I never should have left in the first place." He gathered on of her hands in his and pulled it up to his mouth as he planted a kiss on it. "I'm back now though, I'm not going anywhere." He assured.

"How did you know?" She asked weakly, simply sitting up to hug him had drained what little energy she had. Gabriel looked at Rachel, who stood in the doorway, watching the romantic scene.

"Rachel was scared she would lose you, so she searched me out and I got her letter eventually, I came immediately. When she said that no one knew what was the matter I thought the worst, I thought I was never going to see you again. And then I realised what a terrible mistake I made leaving you." He also had tears in his eyes, as he confessed what he had not told anyone in the months they had been parted.

Gabriel slowly interlaced his fingers with hers, his uncertainty still flowing in his words. "I tried to put my heart into what I did, to take the pain away, but I couldn't because it was still here with you."

Carl came in at that moment, and saw Anna's face, with a soft smile of content despite the pain and weakness she felt. He looked at Rachel. "I see she's feeling better already." He mused, with a silent laugh.

"Yes" Rachel agreed. "I think, given time, she will be fine now."

That night, Gabriel was half sitting-half lying in the centre of Anna's large bed with her in more of less the same position against him. As Rachel had written, he gave her the strength she needed to improve her condition. Carl had examined her and came to the conclusion that the reason she was so weak, was in fact, classic heartache, yet he could not explain her nightmares, which Rachel said grew more fierce every time.

Anna was muttering in her sleep, which Gabriel had been told was marking the start of another nightmare. This would be her second one that day. He thought it would be wise to try and wake her before it got to bad, and he loosened his arms, giving her the space she needed to calm down.

"Anna, baby, wake up." She frowned, and he panicked, she threw herself onto her other side and started muttering in a different language, one that he knew not of. He wondered what she was saying. He noticed that she was starting to sweat again. She let out a small whimper, which worried him even more. After trying and failing once again to wake her, he ran to the door and looked out, calling Rachel and Carl as loud as he could. They came out of the neighbouring rooms, rushing in case it was serious, which it now was.

"What's happened?" Rachel said as they followed him into the bedroom. As she saw Anna, curled up in a ball on the bed whimpering and sobbing she flew her hands to her mouth in shock "My Goodness!" Her exhalation made Gabriel realise this was her worst nightmare yet.

"She won't wake up, and she's speaking in a completely different language to last time." Gabriel said breathlessly as he went to sit back beside her. She was breathing so quickly, Gabriel feared she wasn't taking in enough air to fill the demand of her racing body. Carl ran to the side of the bed, and knelt down. Calmly, he smoothed back Anna's hair from her face, and very close to her ear, he spoke.

"Anna, I know you can hear me. It's Carl. Remember me? Good. I need you to make a signal that you can understand all of this. If you can, I want you to reach out your hand for me." Wondering what Carl was doing, Gabriel watched as Anna's left hand desperately grasped around in the air. Gabriel reached out and held it with his own. Her wet fingers clutched it loosely. "Good Anna, now can you squeeze his hand for me, please?" Carl looked over at Gabriel, who nodded as he felt her grip tighten, amazed that Anna was doing everything he said. "Well done Anna."

"What is it Carl? What's happening to her?" Gabriel asked uneasily. Carl looked up at him from Anna's terrified face.

"It seems she is trapped in her nightmare. It must be so bad that she cannot drag herself away from it. It's kind of like a coma, she can hear everything we say to her, and she can do a few basic commands, but it may be a while before she wakes up." Carl's face was sad, so he had to ask.

"How long will that be?"

"Unless we figure out what is causing them, and stop it soon, she might not wake up at all." Carl said quietly, Anna's breathing started to increase again, Gabriel held on to her hand desperately wanting to calm her. "It is possible the cause of the nightmare might consume her completely."

In the despair of the moment, none of them noticed the figure out on the balcony, gazing through the window. His black hair pulled back in a ponytail with a single gold hoop through his lower ear. He smiled at his work.

"You killed my three loves, it is time for me to kill yours."


	5. Run To You

Anna was walking in the middle of a forest. Her sword knocking against her leg provided a comforting weight as she walked, not really knowing where she was going. She heard a branch snap behind her and she turned around quickly to see who was there, but there was no one, only trees and silence. She kept her eyes peeled as she started to turn around, but again she heard the same snapping sound. So again, she turned around, still nothing stood behind her. She was about to turn around again when an arm encircled her waist and a hand was clapped over her mouth. She tried to get away, but her captor only held her tighter, pulling her flat against him, his lips grazing her ear.

"Fancy meeting you here" She knew that voice anywhere, it was Dracula. He softly nibbled her earlobe. "And without your little boyfriend."

She flinched as he ran his lips down her neck, terrified he was going to bite her, but unable to move, she used the only method of defence she could. She raised her right leg and slammed it down hard of Dracula's foot. He let her go instantly, howling in the pain caused by her boot heel.

He suddenly rushed at her, aiming several punches to her chest. She was confused, but tried to get away all the same. She managed to block one of his hits, but only to have him push her backwards, which sent her literally flying into a tree trunk forty feet away. She howled in pain as she crashed down to the ground, all the bones in her body feeling cracked or broken. He returned again, but this time she could not deflect any of his attacks on her upper body.

"I expected more from you Anna." He laughed evilly.

She lay flat on her back on the leaf-covered ground. She breathed heard, trying to get back her breath, but again, he started at her. She forced herself up, only to be knocked straight back down. A small stream of blood running from her hair line and her lips. Anna found herself once again being thrown into a tree trunk. She lay motionless on the ground for a moment, before sitting up and leaning on the wall for support.

She looked around her, but Dracula was gone. It was the dream. She was seemingly trapped here. She would wander around for a few hours, confused and lost, but then he would come back, beating her with everything he could muster. Once even raping her. All throughout that torture she could hear Gabriel and Carl somewhere in the real world, panicking and begging her to wake up. She felt a presence in the back of her mind that she assumed was Gabriel, and when the dream was empty, like now, she could feel a warm sensation around her, like someone was wrapping their arms around her, and she could feel gentle kisses on her forehead, and a soft, comforting voice belonging to a man she longed to save her, telling her that he was going to get her back.

**Outside dream**

Anna had been stuck in her dream for three days already now, and Gabriel stayed with her whenever he could, never wanting to leave her alone. Carl kept on testing her responses, but they were growing weaker and taking her longer to respond. Gabriel ate his meals at her side, slept with his arms wrapped around her, protecting her when he could not watch her, and he talked to her, wanting to be there when she woke up. Rachel and Carl went through theory after theory to figure out what was causing them, but they had no definite answer until Anna had cried out for Dracula to leave her alone during a particularly bad dream.

Day four and again Gabriel was by her side, he ran his hand through her dark curls and down to her cheek, stopping there and rubbing it gently with his thumb. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something, anything, to get her to wake up. It had been so long since he had heard her voice do anything accept cry and moan, he longed for her warm touch, her kiss, her embrace. He was truly addicted to her, and because he had left her, Dracula was going to destroy her. He couldn't live without her. He closed his eyes and spoke soothingly.

"I won't let him win Anna. I won't let him kill you. I love you so much, and I always will, you hear me? I love you. Please come back to me." He kissed her knuckles again, but when he gazed at her face, she was still asleep. He sighed and held her hand with both of his, stroking her face once again, hoping it was keeping her calm.

"I love you too."

Gabriel's eyes flew open and met Anna's tear filled ones. She threw his arms around his neck once again, while Gabriel wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. He called out for Rachel and Carl, who were waiting coincidently in the corridor.

"I thought I was going to lose you." Said Gabriel, and kissed her on the cheek.

"I was wandering around in this forest and then I heard you calling me, you brought me back from that nightmare." She was crying again, and he let her, he let her release the pain she had endured in her mind. When Carl and Rachel rushed in and saw a distressed, but awake, Anna, they cheered in celebration. Her waking had signalled a weakness in Dracula's plan, that they had caused by a ceremony the Vatican held the previous evening in honour of Anna.

Anna sat in Gabriel's lap, small enough in her position to look like a tiny child, telling him every detail of the dream. What Dracula had done to her in the worst times, and the less painful ones, it sickened him, but he sat, calmly rubbing her back, and listened to her every word. Every single detail of the dream was expelled from deep inside her soul, making the load of fear that had settled on her chest weigh less and less. When she finished pouring out her soul to him, he kissed her on the top of the head

"Do you feel better now?" he asked, nuzzling the top of her head softly "He's not going to hurt you anymore I promise." There was a soft silence between them, which Gabriel took as an opportunity to glance over at Rachel and Carl, who had taken seats beside her bedside. Carl looked at him with a knowing glance, showing that it was all right, Dracula had been weakened.

But Anna's head was still filled with the torment of what Dracula had done to her. Despite her headstrong approach to everything, her only reprieve from her dream was in Gabriel's arms. He had come back for her, he had given up his job, and his life, just to be with her. Although she still felt ill and weak, his presence eased her pain, and when she could feel his strong arms around her body, she had a feeling that every thing was going to be fine.


	6. Ballad Of Youth

Dracula's hold seemingly vanished from Anna. It was as if she had never been affected after a few days, the only reminders being a few dreams that presented themselves that were simply a memory of her pain. Dracula had lost his battle once again against the last of the Valerious. Anna lived on, surviving him twice. After a while, Anna finally accepted that she was free from his grasp.

In a beautiful ceremony in the village church, Carl married Anna Valerious and Gabriel Van Helsing. Anna wore her mother's dress that exposed her shoulders and neckline with the low sleeves, and the small bump that was their unborn child made her glow even more. Gabriel wore a suit that Carl had had made specifically for the occasion. And after the ceremony, came their honeymoon on a small island off the coast of Rome, where Anna finally lived to see the sea.

A few months later, Anna gave birth to a baby girl. She was a truly amazing child, with her mother's beauty. All around her loved her and the new princess was welcomed into the village instantly. They named her Megan Van Helsing.

Megan was now seven years old. She was wise beyond her years, and though she was young still in appearance, in voice and mind she may as well have been fifteen. One thing that she loved doing was singing. Rachel often helped her to write songs to sing to the guests at her parent's balls. She loved to make her parents happy, to see the proud smiles on their faces as they danced slowly to the sound of her voice.

Today, Megan was even happier than usual. She was singing a brand new song at the party tonight. It was a ball in celebration of her parents 8th Wedding Anniversary and her and Rachel had been working on this certain song for over a month, getting it precisely how they needed it to represent the life Anna and Gabriel shared. She went downstairs to breakfast, dressed in a pale pink dress with a matching cardigan over the top.

"Morning." She said cheerfully to her father as she sat down. Carl was eating some toast beside her and she stole the final piece off his plate.

"I was going to eat that." He mumbled quietly, but gave up at her sweet smile. She was simply an angel, and neither Carl nor Gabriel could face saying no to her once she had fluttered her eyelashes playfully at them.

"Morning Baby" Gabriel said. She smiled at him, then looked around.

"Where's Momma?" She asked confused, Anna was normally the first one up, and usually came in to wake her up unless it was a Sunday.

"She's still sleeping." Gabriel said, glancing carefully sideways at Carl, whose eyes narrowed at the notion.

"Oh ok" Megan said simply, she stood up, "Can I go round to Demi's house today Dad?" She asked, considering fluttering her eyelashes but deciding against it. Demi was her best friend, and her father was one of Anna and Gabriel's most trusted soldiers. Demi was born around the same time as Megan, and they had always been together.

"Sure," He replied, knowing it was best to get her out of the house for a while. "Make sure you are back by 4 though," He reminded, though he knew she knew when to be back so Rachel and Anna could get her ready for the party.

"Ok Daddy see you later." She said, kissing him on the cheek before running off.

Carl turned fully to face Gabriel, concern all over his face. "You mean-?"

"She had a nightmare against last night. She woke up screaming and it took her a while to realise it was me holding her and not Dracula. I think he's regaining power." Gabriel said quietly. It was unlikely thing to happen. Unlikely, but not impossible. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned on the table. "I'm worried about her."

Carl didn't want to believe that for all these years Dracula had been steadily regaining his power only to once again try to claim his revenge. Before Carl could answer Gabriel continued.

"It had changed this time though. She was seeing Megan in her dreams; she said that Dracula was holding Megan. She kept crying out for me to get her back. I ended up taking her to Megan's room so she could see for herself that Megan was safe. But when I opened the door, I became scared that I would open it and see an empty bed."

Carl sighed in sympathy. It was going to be harder this time around for Gabriel, as he not only had Anna to protect, but also Megan now. Though it was impossible to imagine Gabriel not protecting either of them, he didn't know what he would do if he were forced to choose between them. It had been a dream he was having more often now, with the lives of Anna and Megan in his hands, and only being able to save one of them.

"I'll look into it." Carl promised. "Go see of she's ok. It is a day to celebrate after all. I'll make sure that we have the toughest men securing the party later on."

Gabriel smiled at the young friar. He then left the table, still feeling unable to eat, and went to his and Anna's bedroom.

He opened the door quietly to see Anna lying in bed, staring out at the window. She was propped up slightly by her pillows, as Gabriel had left her sleeping that morning. She smiled weakly as he walked over to her and sat beside her on the edge of the bed.

"Happy anniversary." He greeted, kissing her lips softly. She smiled, returning the kiss hungrily. They parted and he looked down at her. "How do you feel?" He asked quietly, removing a strand of hair from her face.

"Better," She replied. "I can't wait until later." She smiled. "Being with you, and hearing our Angel sing again."

Gabriel laughed a little. Although Megan was a beautiful singer, the only person she would let hear her sing before a performance was Rachel, which meant that Anna was always happy to attend the parties all over Europe to hear her daughter sing. For her birthday last year, she was invited to sing in London to an audience of two thousand people, and hadn't she been excited!

That night, the party was brimming with finely dressed guests, who sipped on wine if they weren't dancing to the carefully composed music. Anna sat on a golden chair beside a small one exactly the same, which seated Megan. Megan was shaking a little. Anna noticed this and, tearing her eyes away from the scene of happy dancers before her, placed a hand on Megan's shoulder. Megan snapped out of her trance and smiled at her mother.

"What's wrong Megan?" Anna asked quietly, staring into Megan's shining green eyes. "Why are you shaking?"

Megan realised she was shaking and bit her lip. "I'm nervous." She admitted.

Anna smiled and put her arm around her daughter's shoulders, embracing her before letting go and gesturing to the crowd in front of them. "Megan, sweetheart, this isn't the biggest crowd you've performed in front of. You shouldn't be nervous."

"But what if you and Dad don't like our song?" She questioned, pessimism taking over for a brief moment. She was really worried that her parents would hate her song she had worked so hard on.

"I will love your song no matter what it is about Megan. I love hearing you sing, it brings joy to my heart. Now," She said, causing Megan to smile at her. She smiled back. "I think that is time to hear this song don't you?" Anna reasoned.

Carl took his place before the crowd and they stopped dancing. Anna went to stand with Gabriel at the front of the crowd, but facing Carl. Megan went to stand with Rachel at the side of the crowd. Carl began his introduction.

"Ladies and Gentleman. Today, as you all know, is the anniversary of Anna and Gabriel Van Helsing. I was going to sing them a song, but I think that would probably make their day horrible, so their daughter, Princess Megan, is going to do it instead. She had written this song with the help of Rachel Weaver, and it was written to show the love in her parent's lives. Ladies and Gentleman, Megan Van Helsing."

Megan bit her lip again and stepped up the front of the crowd. Before she started to sing, she did her own introduction. "My mum complained last time that her and Dad always dance to the same song on their anniversary that Carl recommends. So I wrote this for their dance." The crowd moved to the edges of the ball room and Gabriel led Anna by the hand to the centre. They smiled and nodded at their seven year old daughter up on the podium and she began her song, nerves disappearing.

"_For all those times you stood by me_

_For all the truth that you made me see_

_For all the joy you brought to my life_

_For all the wrong that you made right_

_For every dream you made come true_

_For all the love I found in you_

_I'll be forever thankful baby_

_You're the one who held me up_

_Never let me fall_

You're the one who saw me through it all"

Anna smiled and leaned her head against Gabriel's shoulder. Her daughter's voice soothing all fears she had felt that morning. She felt calm and happy as Gabriel's arms wrapped around her waist and they danced peacefully around the hall.

"_You were my strength when I was weak_

_You were my voice when I couldn't speak_

_You were my eyes when I couldn't see_

_You saw the best there was in me_

_Lifted me up when I couldn't reach_

_You gave me faith 'coz you believed_

_I'm everything I am_

_Because you loved me"_

Carl looked over at his Goddaughter as she sang. She looked like an angel as well as sounded like one with her long brown curls draping over her shoulders. It made him smile, and he could only imagine how proud Anna and Gabriel must have felt at that moment.

"_You gave me wings and made me fly_

_You touched my hand I could touch the sky_

_I lost my faith, you gave it back to me_

_You said no star was out of reach_

_You stood by me and I stood tall_

_I had your love I had it all_

_I'm grateful for each day you gave me_

_Maybe I don't know that much_

_But I know this much is true_

_I was blessed because I was loved by you"_

Rachel sighed happily as Megan sang the song she had worked on for so long. Though she was so young and inexperienced in love, many of the lyrics had come from her, only a few prompts from Rachel herself. She was proud to have raised Anna and Velkan, and she felt even prouder to be helping to raise the child who was like a grandchild to her.

"_You were my strength when I was weak_

_You were my voice when I couldn't speak_

_You were my eyes when I couldn't see_

_You saw the best there was in me_

_Lifted me up when I couldn't reach_

_You gave me faith 'coz you believed_

_I'm everything I am_

_Because you loved me"_

Gabriel smiled broadly at his daughter as she threw her voice into the chorus again. The song was nothing short of perfect for them. He would have to ask her to sing it more often for them. He twirled Anna and dipped her, kissing her softly, causing her to giggle like a small girl herself.

"_You were always there for me_

_The tender wind that carried me_

_A light in the dark shining your love into my life_

_You've been my inspiration_

_Through the lies you were the truth_

_My world is a better place because of you"_

Dracula stood up on the balcony, hidden by a large column. No one could see him from his hiding spot. He listened to the song and it reminded him of his three brides, Verona, Aleera and Marishka. If he could have felt emotions, he may have shed tears to the angelic voice. But his pride would not allow that. As the demon looked down on the daughter of Van Helsing, it only fuelled his anger more and raised his need for revenge. He glanced over at his dreaded enemy, who was dancing with Anna in the centre of the room. He watched as Van Helsing smiled at the little girl, who smiled back. He spat on the floor with disgust. It should have been him who was the proud father, and if wasn't for those two despicable excuses for hunters and their luck, he would be. "Watch out, Van Helsing. I shall have my revenge." He whispered to himself.

"_You were my strength when I was weak_

_You were my voice when I couldn't speak_

_You were my eyes when I couldn't see_

_You saw the best there was in me_

_Lifted me up when I couldn't reach_

_You gave me faith 'coz you believed_

_I'm everything I am_

_Because you loved me_

_I'm everything I am_

_Because you loved me"_

As her song ended, Megan smiled. The crown applauded loudly, she looked over to her parents, to see what they thought of her gift. They stood side by side, clapping along with the hundreds of others; only they had tears streaming down their faces as they did so. They were not tears of sorrow, but tears of joy, and Megan realised that it was indeed the right song for them. She was about to run over to them when a load roar stopped distracted her.

Anna and Gabriel's heads snapped up in the direction of the roar, and saw a man transforming into a large black bat. "Oh God." Gabriel gasped. As the bat began to fly down towards Megan, both hunters ran towards the girl. She stood frozen, terrified by what she had seen. Gabriel was faster, and was inches away from his daughter when the claws of the beast snatched her away from his grasp.

"NO!" he cried. Him and Anna turned towards where the beast was headed. Instead of leaving however, he transformed back into a man. As he landed on the ground, people everywhere ran to exits of the building, leaving Anna, Gabriel, Rachel and Carl alone with the beast that had their daughter.

Anna gazed in disbelief at the man dressed in ancient black finery, with long black hair and a single hoop earring. There was fire in his eyes as he held the struggling child in a tight grip around her neck, not hard enough to choke her, but enough to make them all realise he was _not_ playing around.

"Anna Valerious...and Gabriel Van Helsing...we meet again."


	7. Sacrifice

Gabriel froze. Part of him wanted to tear away his daughter from the monster, but his mind told him that if he got to close, he would probably kill her. He looked towards Dracula. His enemy. The one thing he had feared, it was not fear for himself, but fear of the fact that Dracula was the one thing with the determination and the power to destroy his wife and daughter.

"Well, what do we have here?" He said in his thick Romanian drawl, heavy with the anger he felt. He looked down at Megan, who was whimpering in his grasp. "It looks like the Valerious and the Van Helsing's have been breeding, this will not do."

"Let me go you big bully!" Megan screamed.

"Megan! Stay still! I'm going to get you baby!" Gabriel shouted in response, their eyes met, and he could see the fear in his child's eyes. This was his worst nightmare.

"What now, Gabriel? What will you do now? Kill me again? I will return. I will keep returning until every Valerious is dead. That includes the girl now." Dracula teased.

Anna stood staring at her daughter. She was terrified. She had never been so scared, not even when she had been trapped in those nightmares. She had seen this scene before. This was what had disturbed her dreams the previous night. And she knew what had to be done.

"Now it is time for the abomination to be destroyed." Dracula said, tightening his grip a little so Megan was raised from the floor.

"What abomination? She's a kid from crying out loud!" Gabriel shouted, stepping closer, but freezing on the spot as, again, Dracula tightened his grip. Anna watched helplessly as her daughter struggled for breath. No one moved in fear of him hurting Megan more.

Anna looked from Gabriel in front of her to Megan and she stepped forward. "Wait!" She said loudly. Dracula smiled as Anna interrupted. "Take me instead. Just let Megan go."

"Anna! No!" Gabriel said, turning her to face him, "I'm not loosing you to him, not again." There was pain in his eyes, the scenario becoming more impossible for him to act upon.

"You have to. Just save Megan, she needs you." She said quietly, so Megan and Dracula would not hear.

"She needs you too." Gabriel said. Anna looked at him silently; there was pain in his eyes, a sense of helplessness that he couldn't fight. He knew that there was no other way, but he didn't want to admit it. It was his worst nightmare, he was having to choose between the two people he loved. And time was running out. "Please don't do this." He begged, putting a hand on her arm, wanting her to come up with a plan that would return both of them to him.

"I have to. Remember that no matter what happens, I love you and Megan with all my heart." A tear slipped from her eye as she remembered the song she had been dancing to barely five minutes ago.

"Tick tock." Dracula teased, Anna started to turn her body away but Gabriel held her still, as he had done once before, many years ago.

"I will find you. I will bring you home. I promise." He whispered. She nodded and walked away.

Dracula looked at Gabriel with a look of satisfaction on his face. For a moment, Gabriel wondered if the demon was actually going to set Megan free in return for Anna, or whether he would keep her as well, but sure enough, as Anna arrived at his side, she herself released Megan from the monster's arms. Anna crouched in front of her daughter.

"Megan. I have to go away for a while." She said sadly.

"Why?" The little girl asked. "Didn't you like my song?" Her tiny eyes brows knitted together in worry and fear, her throat ached as it began to welcome air once again.

Anna smiled and wiped one of her child's frightful tears away. "I loved your song baby, It was perfect. Now I want you to go with Daddy. Go home, and I want you to sing him some songs on the way home to make him happy." Anna said clearly, knowing full well that everyone was listening to her every word, including the demon at her side.

"Ok." Megan said, wanting to cry at the thought of her mother leaving her, but she was told to go with her father, and so that is what she would do. "I will miss you Momma." The mother and daughter embraced tightly. Anna kissed the top of Megan's head.

"Now go." She said, watching from her crouched position as Megan went to her father's side. She watched through teary eyes as Gabriel held his daughter as he wept silent tears at his wife being so close to the demon she despised. He wanted to save her, but one way or another; he was only going home with one of them.

Before Anna could stand up, Gabriel saw Dracula raise his arm, and strike her in the temple. She cried out in pain before landing unconscious on the marble ballroom floor. Rachel and Carl stood behind the panicking father and he ran to his wife, only to be unsuccessful in reclaiming her. Dracula lifted Anna off the floor as he quickly transformed into his bat form and they disappeared off of a window on the top floor.

It was like time had stood still. Gabriel stood with his eyes transfixed at the window where Anna had been carried off. He wasn't aware of how much time passed as he stood there. He would have stayed there all night in shock had he not felt a pain of small porcelain arms wrap around his waist, begging for comfort. He looked down at his daughter and crouched down to lift her off the ground, holding her in his arms as she silently buried her head in his shoulder.

Gabriel looked up towards the heavens, and called out in a silent prayer to the lord. _Why? Why did you let him take her? Hasn't she been through enough? Why has he returned?_ He sighed, comforting his child, and then began to cry silent tears as he walked back to Rachel and Carl, who helped him to calm the little child on the carriage ride home. As Gabriel tucked the small girl in her bed, he looked at her peaceful sleeping face. It was lost in the land of dreams. He knew that when she awoke, he would have to explain about Dracula, about Anna's family, and about her heritage. It scared him that she was only seven years old, not a woman who would accept it easier. She would ask lots of questions, and understand little, but if he was going to keep her safe while he saved Anna, it was going to have to be said.


	8. Learning How To Fall

Gabriel stared at the map before him. It showed all of Transylvania, and had been there, implanted in the wall, for many years. It wasn't simply a map though, it was a doorway. A doorway to the devil's lair, and a doorway to where Anna was. Gabriel was silently staring at the map, debating whether to just burst through and get her back, or if he should listen to Carl and plan first, so as not to put her in anymore danger. _But she's already in danger _his mind told him.

"Daddy."

He turned around in his chair to face Megan. She was sitting at a nearby desk, Anna's desk, reading a book. She was an amazing reader, intelligent enough to read even the longest words of a twelve year old. Her brown hair was down this morning, the curls lining her face in simple layers that made her look so much like the portrait of Anna as a child, which was visible over Megan's shoulder.

"Yeah baby?" He asked, gazing at her with love.

"This book has a picture of Momma and you in it." He looked at her with a creased forehead of confusion as he stood up and walked over to the book she was showing him.

Sure enough, there were two people in a portrait inside the old book. It was at least one hundred years old, judging from the deep colour of the parchment it was written on. The man had dark hair, and his eyes were hidden in shadows from a western style hat. He had his arms wrapped protectively around the woman, who was facing the same direction as him, as if at some hidden danger. She herself wore a red gown and her long brown hair was extremely curly. Megan had been right, it was they, but this book had been written before they had met, long before.

He glanced down at the lower part of the page, and, unseen to Megan's eyes, there was a small figure of a girl that stood in the middle of the man and woman, holding onto the man's waist. She had hair that matched the woman's, and Gabriel smiled for the first time in days. It wasn't just him and Anna, it was Megan as well. Underneath the artwork was a small caption.

"_The Van Helsing family, the family of Angels that God shall send down from heaven to defeat the evil in the world."_

He put an arm around his daughter as he read the page before it, a long paragraph of detail that spoke of them.

_God sends Angels where he cannot perform his work himself. These angels are the Van Helsings. The family have long been written of in myth and legend as successful hunters and the restorers of peace in the world. Gabriel Van Helsing, the fabled left-hand of God himself, is a figure of many men's idolism, some men once claimed that the warrior angel appeared to save them from certain death. Men want to be like him, and women want to be loved by him. However, his heart belongs to only one woman, Anna Van Helsing, an princess turned queen in Eastern Europe, who is the reincarnation of one of her ancestors, the woman that aided in the first killing of count Vladislaus Dragulia – Dracula. Legend tells that they are to defeat Dracula a further two times before he is truly gone from our world. Their daughter, Megan, was once feared to be the key to destroying him, but in truth the key was her mother Anna, and her bloodline. If her blood were to be spilled on his skin, he would perish eternally._

Gabriel sighed. He realised now why Dracula wanted Anna so badly. He didn't really want Megan; she was just a ploy, so that Anna would sacrifice herself in place of her child. It all made sense. The dreams, the sickness, everything was happening for a reason. He must have known about the prophecy, which is why he had always been so hell-bent on destroying her family. He wondered bleakly if Anna knew. He tried to take his mind off of it by talking to Megan.

"You see this?" he said, pointing at the portrait version of her on the page. Megan leaned closer and Gabriel traced the outline with his finger. "If this is us, then this little girl here...is you." He ruffled his daughter's hair and she giggled.

"Can I keep it?" She asked sweetly. He smiled back, who was he to deny his daughter a picture of them all together for her own purposes?

"Of course you can." He said, tearing the page out of the book carefully and placing it in her hand. She stood up and began to walk to the door, but she ran quickly back to Gabriel, hugging him harder than she usually would. He looked out of the window to find the darkness was increasing steadily. "Come, on." He whispered into her hair. "It's time for bed."

He stood up, holding Megan's hand as he walked down to her bedroom, which was across the hall from his own. She climbed into bed and he pulled the blanket over her. The small girl looked up at him with an expression he often saw on his daughters face when she was ill or hurt: a look that begged for reassurance and comfort. "What's wrong baby? You miss your Momma?"

Megan nodded, it was a stupid question, and of course she missed Anna. Gabriel sat on the side of the bed; he put a kiss on her forehead and smoothed her hair as he spoke the comfort she so desperately needed.

"Don't be scared, I'm going to talk to Carl, and I'm going to get her back as soon as I can. I won't rest until I bring her home. Then we'll all be together again. I promise you." He said, his voice barely above a horsy whisper.

Megan smiled and curled on her side before falling almost instantly into a deep sleep. Gabriel smiled at his daughter, though she could not see it, and left the room, feeling a pang of guilt that she wanted her mother so badly and he could not provide her with her wishes because of the foul demon that held her.

As Gabriel stepped into his own room, he could almost see Anna sitting before her dressing mirror combing her beautiful hair as she had done the previous evening. He shook his head in dismay, and the image disappeared. With a sudden flare of anger at Dracula, he stomped off to find Carl.

Anna gazed out of the window. She could see mountains all around her that were peaked with snow-covered tips. All of them looked dangerous and when looking down, she found that she couldn't even see the bottom of the chasm that they lined. It disheartened her even more to admit that the only escape from this place was a rescue, but she was not afraid of not being rescued, as she knew Gabriel would rescue her, she was simply afraid of what would happen to her in the meantime.

"Please Gabriel." She spoke into the wind. "Please hurry."


	9. Plain of the Lost

It was a cold night; Anna pulled the thin ragged blanket closer around her shoulders as she sat in the corner of the room. She remembered this room as the one that her and Carl had found the werewolf cure in many years ago. It was spacious, yet there was still lightly dusted snow lining the barred window and the corners of the rooms. She had managed to clear a space so she could sit though, until she was rescued. There was still no door, yet the iron barred gate had been replaced since she had thrown the viscous material over it, melting the strong metal instantly.

She had lost all sense of time save for the rising and falling of the sun; she had no idea how long she had been unconscious for. The sun had set, Anna guessed, about two hours ago. Since then she was waiting for Dracula or someone – something – else to appear. She knew that at least one of his undead minions, probably himself, would come to taunt her.

Another hour passed, but to Anna it felt much longer. Dwergi passed the cell many a time, pointing at her and mumbling in their strange undecipherable language, before Dracula finally appeared. He opened the gate, and closed it once again, locking it behind him. Anna glared, now she was trapped inside with him, at least before she had been separated from him by the gate, but obviously the demon had control over that as well.

He stepped closer to the gypsy queen, who stood up and backed against the wall to stay as far away from him as possible.

"Well, I see you are finally awake my dear." He said in his cold voice, _almost as cold as his heart _and thought, cringing at him calling her 'my dear', the only person who had ever called her that was her father before he had died. She didn't answer him, or change the hatred in her glare. "We need not make this so hard, Anna." He said, his voice now louder, reverberating off the walls around them. "All I want is a chance to live, free from God and his warriors."

Anna realised that by 'god's warriors' he meant her and Gabriel. She pushed herself firmly against the wall as he got closer than she was comfortable, though in truth she was uncomfortable being in the same century as he was, let alone the same room. "Why do you want me?" she said in a whisper.

Her strong front had been broken. She now no longer had a family about to slip into purgatory to defend, but a family on Earth who was safe. The only person in danger was her, and she was powerless to defend herself against this monster. She was still in the gown she had worn to the party however long ago, and thus completely unarmed. Helpless. She simply had to stall him into keeping her alive until Gabriel came.

"Now that would be telling, wouldn't it?" he teased. She sighed under her breath, feeling dizzy from lack of food and water. He stepped closer to her still, she could feel his breath upon her neck now, and she became terrified he would bite her. In her mind, becoming his bride would be a fate worse than death. Immobilized by fear, she stood completely still, scared he would kill her if she moved just an inch. His eyes hypnotised her, lulling her into a false security, and she began to feel sleepy, and comfortable, almost as if she were lying down in Gabriel's safe arms. She wasn't aware of falling over, but she did not feel any pain when she did so. Closing her eyes, she was powerless to resist the sleep she was suddenly longing for so badly.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" Carl said yet again. Gabriel sighed, feeling his anger constantly swell inside of him as he yearned for his missing wife. The monster hunter turned to face the timid friar, who was for once looking unafraid and determined. It was the only time that Gabriel had seen Carl faced with such a situation, yet be able to look at him in the eye with no fear or cowardice.

"No, you stay here. Someone needs to stay with Megan." He said simply. There was no way in heaven and earth that he would leave Megan alone in the house at her age on a normal day, let alone when he knew that it was dangerous simply to let her leave his side.

"I want you to stay Daddy." She piped up from beside Carl. Gabriel continued loading up his crossbow.

"I can't baby, I'm going to get your mother back." He turned once again to the pair, taking in the image of his daughter. Her features, all of them, so much like her mother's that it pained to look at her sometimes. He crouched down to he was the same height as her as he spoke to her. "Be good, no matter what happens, stay with Carl." Megan nodded in understanding. She wrapped her think arms around his neck as she hugged him. "I love you," he whispered to her.

"I love you too Daddy." She said, Gabriel could have sworn she was about to cry when she said this, but he wasn't sure. Pulling away he turned to Carl.

"Remember, all you need is one drop of her blood on his skin and he'll be gone forever. Until then, good luck." Carl reminded. Gabriel took a torch from the wall, and stepped through the doorway's mirror like image. As he stepped through, he saw the reflection of his daughter as she held on to her godfather. Carl waited until the image of Gabriel was completely gone from their sight, and then led Megan off down the corridor.

_Anna felt her mind swirling with an invisible mist. She was no longer wearing her ball gown, but now her old riding attire that she had been wearing when she first met with Gabriel. She could not see where she was, and all that was around her was a landscape of what appeared to be made of cloud like material. She stood in the same spot, but turned slowly around her, looking for a sign of life besides her rapidly beating heart._

_After a while of waiting, a shadowy figure appeared in the distance. Her heart thumped harder, forcing adrenaline to coarse through her veins. She had a bout of terror rise up into her mind as she thought that this approaching stranger was Dracula. As they got closer, she could see they were wearing riding clothing similar to her own, but instead of a corset, they wore a rich waistcoat underneath their navy cloak. _

"_Do not be afraid Anna." The person spoke in a soft voice that she recognised. A voice from her unforgotten youth, a voice she had longed to hear again for many years._

"_Father?" She asked, wearily taking a step towards her possible father. _

_Her guest was in no time close enough for her to see up close. They soft grey hair and carefully trimmed beard edged a face with eyes she had seen only in dreams for many years. She smiled softly and fell into the arms of Boris Valerious, late king of the gypsies. _

"_Anna." He sighed happily, "My darling daughter." _

_Their embrace lasted a long while. It reminded Anna of when she was scared in the middle of the night, and her father would come and comfort her until the fear passed. She remembered how she would hold him this tight every time he returned from a werewolf or vampire hunt on the forest on the edge of their small town. But then he disappeared, and she had been forced to come to terms with the fact that Dracula's curse was drawing nearer to becoming complete, and her family was doomed to an eternity in Hell. _

_Realising that she was in fact in the company of her dead father, she feared for her own state of being. Reluctantly, she pulled out of his arms. "Daddy, am I dead?"_

_The words escaped her mouth like a river of poison to Boris's ears. In this empty area, her fear reverberated off the invisible walls and echoed around them. He sighed heavily, taking her hands between his._

"_You are not dead –"He began._

"_But then how come I can see you?" Anna cut him short._

"_You are in a state of being that is neither dead nor alive. Do you remember when you had those nightmares before?" Anna nodded grimly, of course she remembered them. "You were only partially under Dracula's spell then, and you were in your home all the while. But now, your body is in his fortress, and you are completely in his spell. So your mind has been sent to this place..." He gestured around them to the empty space. _

"Where is this place?" Anna said, following her father's gaze as he looked from the heavenly glow over his shoulder and then the dark red glow behind her.

"_In heaven, we call it the Plain of the Lost. Spelled and trapped minds dwell here until their fate is decided. If they are rescued, or they recover, they are free to awaken once again and return to life. If they are lost forever in the real world, then their actions are weighed against each other to decided whether you walk into the light ... or the darkness."_


	10. Watch of the Angels

Heya I am back again! I got a few reviews this time round, one with a lot of criticism in it, I don't mind criticism, but just bear in mind that this is what is going on in my mad head. This is the way I want the story to be, and thanks to the author of 'Song of the Siren' and 'Chorus of the dark Revelation' she has told me to mention that because I have been moaned at for using a Celine Dion song in a time when pop music didn't exist, that really vampires and werewolves and other monsters mentioned in the film don't exist either. That's why they call it fan FICTION. Anyways, here we go again with Chapter 10!

Gabriel had left his home at around midday, and he had been creeping around Dracula's castle for the better part of three hours, meaning that in these winter months it wasn't long before the dark lord himself joined him. It was becoming hard to keep hiding from Dracula's servants, especially as it seemed that the closer it came to Dracula's waking time, the more of them there seemed to be around. They weren't even doing anything important in his eyes, just wandering around talking in that strange language of there's that he still didn't understand.

He was now searching a part of the castle that was less well kept as the plush rooms he had checked earlier, to no avail. It was becoming darker, the only light in this darkened area coming from the lit brackets on the walls carrying the torches. The stone walls were jammed with bits of rotting wood where they had broken and left holes for the cold to breeze in. He looked in through a door that led to a small square room that had nothing but a pile of wood in the corner. He frowned in disbelief at the abandoned manacles on the wall, indicating this was some sort of torture chamber.

_Please, God. _He prayed desperately, _let her be all right, don't let her die. _He forced himself to keep walking, intending to keep his promise to both Anna and Megan of bringing Anna back home where she belonged. He remembered dancing with her at the ball on the evening of her kidnap. She had looked so beautiful, in her silk dress, as she was held close in his embrace, the pair of them twirling around the ballroom to their daughters sweet voice. _I didn't even get to spend the night of our anniversary with her _he thought in dismay. He was fuelled once more by anger, Dracula always had to spoil everything good in his life.

He found himself stopping to look in a room that he had almost missed. It was one with no door, just a huge iron gate covering the entrance. It was a large chamber with an open window frame that was letting in a chilled wind that he could feel from over thirty feet away. There was a light dusting of snow all around the room save for a single space against the wall where there was a figure laying face down in the snow with a thin rag around their shoulders, which had slipped off and was half on the floor.

His eyes widened in shock, fear and anger as he recognised the dark curls radiating from the woman's body, though he could not see her face. His rested on one of her limp hands which was strewn carelessly away from the rest of her body. The setting sun at the window made a one of the last rays of sunshine at her level hit a small bad of gold around her finger, and a bracelet made of gold and rubies. A combination of jewellery that he recognised more than the hair. "No…" He whispered in utter pain. "Anna!" He whispered loudly, she didn't respond. "Anna!" He called louder this time.

His eyes began to water, as she didn't move at all. She lay there like she was in a dream, or a coma. He remembered back to years ago when Dracula had had her under his spell, and began to pray that she wasn't under it again. _Hold on Anna, _he urged. _I came back that time for you, I'm coming this time as well. _

_Anna gulped in fear, but pushed it aside quickly. "Do not worry father. Gabriel will find my body, he will not let me die." She said confidently, her eyes filling with tears all the while. "He will come for me."_

_Boris chuckled lightly, "Ah yes, I have been watching you with him, he saved you the last time as well, he has been very good to you. Me, your mother and Velkan watched you defeat Dracula the first time with him, and we watched how heartbroken you both were when he left. We could see how much you love each other."_

_Anna smiled, her tears falling freely down her face. "Thank you." She whispered._

"_My dear, whatever for?" He asked casually, as all talk of death was forgotten._

"_Your blessing." She stated simply. It didn't matter to her that his blessing was coming eight years after their marriage, it just overjoyed her that even in heaven, he was watching them, giving them his blessings everyday in everything that they did._

"_I could not give you anything else." He said, hugging his daughter once more. "Now, what of my granddaughter, how is she?" He asked, changing the subject only slightly. _

"_You know?" Anna asked, her eyebrows knitting together in confusion. _

"_My darling, I check up on my daughter every day, I think I would have noticed if she had her own child." He laughed again. "She is everything like you were at that age, loving, loyal, and most of all, she definitely gets her curiosity from her mother." He joked, remembering well how daring Anna was in her younger years, only calming down but a little to take care of her own daughter._

"_She is amazing, Daddy, I wish you could meet her for real. She loves the stories of her grandparents and uncle, she wishes you would come back to us." Anna smiled at the innocence of Megan, not knowing that once you were in heaven, you were pretty much stuck there. "She has a picture of us when I was an infant beside the one of me her and Gabriel, she keeps them above her bed. She calls you all angels." _

"_And in a way, she is right." Boris said with ease. _

Gabriel tried for ages to get Anna to wake up, but it was useless. She was under his spell once again. He was startled by a loud screeching sound, signalling Dracula's awakening. He hid in the shadows across from the door, waiting for Dracula to open the door, he would then slip in, hide in the shadows, and get Anna out of there. As footsteps approached, he braced himself.


	11. Match Made in Heaven

Chp11 up! As we get nearer and nearer to the story's end, will Gabriel get Anna back, or will he live in regret and sorrow for the rest of eternity? Please keep reviewing, it means so much to have good reviews to any writer, it makes it easier to carry on writing if you know people appreciate your work.

**QueenCreaterOfMyLittleWor: **Glad to hear you like it, don't worry, at least five more chapters yet to come, maybe even more.

Chapter 11: Trapped

Gabriel watched as his age old enemy calmly walked up the steps towards Anna's prison. It took all of his well-practiced self-control and his essentiality of Anna's safety to stop him jumping on the spawn of the devil and kill him there and then. He concentrated solely on the first part of the plan: getting in to the room.

Dracula's well kept ashen hair was, as per usual, swept away from his face in a golden clip-band. His black tunic was like that which one would expect to see a prince wearing at a royal gathering, not the devil's servant wearing it for a casual walk around his castle. He appeared as if he had not aged a day in nine years, though in technicality, the vampire could not age, which explained the old-fashioned decorative detail on his shoes and jacket.

Gabriel snuck closer, feeling that it was slightly easy to get this close to Dracula without him realising. He watched silently as the demon reached into his pocket for a silver rusted key. He placed it in the lock and turned it round, causing the huge Iron Gate to open up before them both. _Just like a portal into Hell _Gabriel mused. He followed Dracula into the circular prison, making sure his footsteps were in time with Dracula's so he wouldn't hear him.

However, as he got inside the chamber, the gate slammed closed automatically, as if re-locked by an unseen force. He turned to look at it, it was most definitely forced closed, but by what? He heard a deep echoing laugh behind him, and his eye's widened. Slowly, Gabriel turned, knowing that his desperation for Anna's safety had led him to become the one thing that wouldn't help either of them.

Trapped.

Anna was now sat on the ground beside her father, knowing that it could be a while before she was out of this empty plain. Boris held his daughter close to him, like he had done to comfort her while she cried after her mother was taken by Dracula all those years ago, only then she had been a mere six years old, and her brother ten years.

"_Father, what is happening to my body? I know I am in pain, that I am hurt, but I cannot feel where or why." Anna asked, she could not defend herself in this state, so who was to know what brutality Dracula had submitted her to when she was 'sleeping'._

_Boris sighed, and Anna noticed not to far away that a fountain had begun to fill with water from an invisible source. She had not seen it before, and wondered if it had appeared there as suddenly as her father had. Boris stood up from his seat on the floor, taking Anna by the hand and helping her up also, and led her over to the fountain._

_It was beautiful, filled with water that was shimmering in the light that seemed to come from the radiance of the fountain itself. There were tiny flowers scattered over the surface of the pearly water, which caused tiny ripples with their petals as they floated around lazily. The fountain itself was made of the purest marble. The white stone was not extremely worn over it's delicate pattern of cherubs and angels that rose from the centre but it was still silky smooth in appearance._

_Anna was breathless when she saw it. It reminded her of the beauty that she saw in the love that her and Gabriel shared, and also of the innocence that she saw when she looked at her daughter. "Father, what is this?" She asked in a whisper, overcome by the astounding peace that she felt in the presence of this fountain._

"_It was forged by the highest angel's of heaven." Boris told her, having told the tale to so many now he knew it by heart. "The left and right hands of God." Boris looked at her out of the corner of his aged eyes, watching the recognition on his daughter's face at the names he mentioned._

"_Gabriel. He made this?" She said with amazement, not understanding how the monster hunter, despite his gentlemanly attitude towards her, mad created something so beautiful out of his bare hands._

"_Not in this lifetime." Boris informed her." Before he lost his memory, he lived here in heaven, as the second highest angel in creation, second to only one, a most beautiful angel. The two of them were in love, so much love that you could sense it from a mile away when you saw them together." Anna looked away from her father in sadness, unable to linger on the thought of Gabriel in love with another woman. "But she was lost in a battle, and her soul was believed to be gone forever, dragged into Hell by Dracula himself when she and Gabriel fought and destroyed him for the first time." Boris sighed, knowing that what he had said had upset Anna, he put his arm around her shoulders, before indicating for her to sit on the edge of the fountain. When her skin touched the marble, she found herself feeling that Gabriel was there with her, comforting her through the fountain. "For many generations, he was but a shell of an angel, and he swore on his place in heaven that he would find her. He went to this fountain, the one that they had built together in a celebration of their love, and sat by it day and night for over a hundred years, searching every inch of the Earth for his angel. He realised, after this time, that the only way to find her would be to return to Earth as a mortal. Before leaving heaven, he was told that she had been rid of her memory as she fought Dracula, and would not remember him at all. This saddened him greatly, and he told God that he wished to have his memory erased also, so that they would find each other, and rescue one another from the emptiness in their hearts. An emptiness that was a space they reserved for only one thing, the love of the other angel."_

_Anna's eyes were filled with tears as she listened to the story of Gabriel's past love. She wondered if he was searching like that for her at this moment, whether he was as distraught that he was not with her as she was by the angel's disappearance. She swallowed a sob, and asked the question she was dreading. "Did – did he ever find her?" Boris did not answer her directly at first, but only continued with the story that had marvelled all newcomers in heaven for centuries._

"_He joined a legion of God's followers, a secret organisation that still resides today underneath the Vatican church. He did not remember who he was, where he came from, all he knew was that he was searching for something, a someone that he lost that he knew nothing about." Boris smiled. "Then he got a mission on day, one that brought back memories. He was shown three pictures of three people that were involved in his mission. The one that was lost, myself, the one that had disappeared, your brother, and finally, the one he recognised, though from where he did not know, you."_

_Anna's head snapped up to look at her father, unable to fully comprehend what he was saying to her. "Me?" She asked, gazing at her father with great confusion._

"_He travelled to our land, and as I watched from heaven, I, too, was told the story by your mother, and in turn, so was your bother. We saw him hold you battered body after he turned on you in the werewolf form, still not fully cured of the curse. We saw him cry as he turned back into a man, a broken man, who had lost, found, and lost again, his one true angel."_

_Anna smiled through a few tears that fell down her pale skin. "I was the angel?" She said with happy disbelief. _

"_You still are, my darling," Boris said, drawing his daughter to him and kissing her forehead. "You always will be."_

_Anna hugged her father tightly, crying happy but silent tears. His story was a true one, she knew her father would not lie to her, and it proved what her heart already knew. Her and Gabriel were meant for each other, a literal match made in heaven by God himself. Every time they confirmed their love for one another, they had been writing their own prophecy, their own story. _

What do you think? Like it? Hate it? Let me know :D Keep the reviews coming, the ones I have are very helpful to me, hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.


	12. The Fire Inside

Dracula's laugh sent ripples of fear down Gabriel's spine. Now that he had been found, he had to think of a new plan to get Anna out of there, and fast. He took another look at his wife, she was still unconscious, then he turned to face the devil. He looked uneasily cool about the situation. _He's been waiting for me _he thought in shock. _He _knew _I'd come for Anna._

"What now, Gabriel?" He stepped closer to the distressed husband, making Gabriel step backwards, keeping the distance between them as large as possible. On the upside, the closer he was to Gabriel, the further away he was from Anna. "Have you come to save her?"

"You knew I'd come for her now what do you want?" He said forcefully.

"What I have always wanted, Gabriel. The end of the Valerious bloodline." Dracula rushed forward, so quickly that Gabriel only realised he had been hit when he fell to the ground after hitting the wall. Pain radiated from his ribs as he landed with a thud on the floor. Something landed on his head and he felt himself loosing into the darkness. _Anna… _He thought as he blacked out.

Anna was now looking into the fountain. Her father had told he that it had been built so that families could watch their loved ones from heaven. She was watching with fear as Gabriel sneaked into her cell with Dracula close in front of him. She turned to her father. "See, I told you he'd come for me!" She said with anticipation. She turned back to the fountain, In time to see Dracula trick him and throw him into the wall. "NO!"

She screamed aloud as Gabriel was injured. Her own heart breaking as she watched his battered body fall to the stony ground. She was helpless as she watched Dracula walk over to her own body. Her father put a hand on her shoulder. She started praying as he lifted her up by the throat, shaking her around roughly. At the same time, she felt her body being pulled around.

"Dad what's –" She began asking, but he already knew what she was going to ask.

"Our time here is ending, Anna." He told her sombrely. He hugged her, yet she could not feel him now, his outline was fading, or was it hers?

"No, father, I can't do this alone." She said, her voice thick with her shed tears.

"You will not do it alone, my darling, you are returning to your love. He was drifting away from her now, returning into the distance he had come from. "Remember we all love you." He said as he faded completely.

Anna sobbed uncontrollably. She didn't want to return to her own world. She wanted to be reunited with Gabriel, yes, but she didn't want to face Dracula. She was afraid, terrified, of what he would do to her, to Gabriel.

Gabriel awoke with an incredible grogginess clouding his mind. He remembered Anna, lying unconscious, and Dracula, smiling evilly at him. He tried to reach out a hand, wishing to end his constant headache, but he found himself unable to stretch. His vision cleared, and he looked down to see himself chained at the wrists to the ground. He summoned all of his strength to try and break the manacles but it was useless. He looked around him, and almost screamed in heartbreak.

Anna was lying on the ground, not six feet from him. Her body was completely naked, and he could now see every bruise and cut on her porcelain skin. What skin wasn't bruised was covered with dirt and grime. She was still unconscious, but her lips were slightly parted, and she had dried tears on her cheeks. He had never seen her in such a way. He struggled to his feet, fighting off the dizziness, and used his anger to try at break the chains.

The manacles cut him off when he was just out of reach from Anna. He pulled desperately on the chains to try and get to his wife. He eventually gave up, with no strength left to continue pulling. He collapsed on the ground as close as he could to Anna. She started to moan a little. His head jerked up from the ground.

"Anna, sweetheart, can you hear me?" He called out to her, forgetting the pain in his wrists he felt from pulling on the manacles, which had cut into his skin.

She opened her eyes a fraction and looked around her. She realised from the grim stonewall nearby that she was no longer in the Plain of the Lost with her father, and that she was back in Dracula's fortress. She saw Gabriel collapsed on the ground, sweating and breathing hard beside her. She crawled over to him, and no sooner had she moved, she felt an enormous pain between her legs.

Now that she was closer, he caught her in his embrace as she fell sobbing. Anna looked down at her naked body, covered in fingerprint shaped bruises, which confirmed her worst fears. She had hoped that her encounter with Dracula had been a nightmare, and nothing more. Only the markings on her thighs proved otherwise. Gabriel also noticed the marks and held her closer. "Oh Anna," He said, tears leaking uncontrollably from his own eyes. "Baby, I'm sorry."

How long he held her for, he did not know, but after she stopped crying she pulled away from him, she spoke. "You came for me." Her voice was hoarse and scratchy.

"Of course I did," He said. "I'm only sorry I didn't find you sooner." He traced a bruise on her cheek and she winced in pain. "I'm so sorry." He apologized over and over.

A ringed hand pulled Anna's shoulder away and threw her backwards, making her land on the floor several feet away. Dracula walked over and stood above her. "I told you not to move!" He roared at her. "You know what happens when you defy my orders Anna!" Anna recoiled in horror and pain in remembrance of what he did to her before.

"No." She whimpered, shielding herself with her arms. "No, please not again." Gabriel fought tooth and nail against his bonds, hating Dracula being so close to Anna and threatening her. He watched as Dracula kicked her in the stomach, he yelled constantly in protest, threatening Dracula.

"I'll kill you!" He swore. "I swear to God, I will kill you for hurting her!"

Dracula left a sobbing Anna on the floor and walked over to Gabriel, standing just out of reach of the enraged warrior. He signalled some Dwergi over, who unlocked his manacles. Gabriel did not hesitate in leaping forwards at Dracula, intending to fulfil his promise.


	13. The Price Of Love

Hey guys, sorry if my last chapter offended or upset anyone, but it will be made up for. :D promise :D Thanks for all the reviews I have been getting!

Gabriel threw Dracula against the wall as soon as he was free from his bonds. He held him by his collar up against the stone wall and growled in his smiling face. "You're going to regret that." He promised. He looked over his shoulder to Anna, who still lay sobbing on the floor as her memories caught up with her, then back at Dracula. "No one hurts my wife. No one!" They engaged in a deadly battle, a fight to the death.

Anna heard her husband's shouts and looked up to where he was holding Dracula. She kept on crying, but was glad that he was there, glad that he would make Dracula pay for what he did. There was also regret in her mind. She realised that there was something in her health that she should have told Gabriel before her kidnapping. She was going to tell him after the ball, but she hadn't got the chance to, and now she was faced with awful realisation that her unborn child was probably dead after her treatment here. Her and Gabriel had been trying to have another baby since Megan was five, and finally she thought they had got lucky, and God had blessed them with another chance, but if she had almost died in this endurance, there was no hope for a baby that was depending on her for life. The thought only made her cry harder, and she wrapped an arm around her sore stomach.

Dracula spun around, avoiding Gabriel's attack, and pinned the Anna's rescuer against the wall, much like him a few minutes before. "Why must it always be like this, Gabriel? Why the fighting? We were a team once, and after all this time, you let a woman come between us. Is she even worth it?" He taunted.

Gabriel hit him in the face with such force that it sent the undead demon reeling backwards. "I love her!" He yelled at Dracula. There was a moment when neither of them moved and then Dracula straightened up, once again taunting.

"We both know that this fight is useless. You have no werewolf venom this time, you cannot kill me." He glared at Anna. "Only she can, and she doesn't look like she has the strength to at the moment." Gabriel grabbed a large piece of metal from the ground and threw it, kitting Dracula on the head, stunning him momentarily. He recovered, but was on his knees long enough for Gabriel to race over to Anna.

He kissed her forehead through her crying. "Hold on baby." He said lovingly. "Don't worry, I'm going to take you home. You're going to be alright." She shook her head, becoming dizzy. "Anna, what is it?" He asked, looking for a source of pain and discovering that there were too many wounds to count.

"I was pregnant." She whimpered to him. She looked up into his heartbroken eyes. "I was going to tell you after the ball, Rachel and me found out that morning, I could feel it inside me." Gabriel watched as Anna poured her heart out to him. He remembered how happy she had been to be able to feel Megan inside of her. "Then he hurt me." She indicated Dracula's wounds, and once again held her stomach. "And I can't feel it anymore." She cried loudly. "I think it's dead. He killed it, he killed our baby."

Dracula stayed kneeling on the ground, one leg bent before him to keep him steady. He watched Anna crying, and realised that by killing her unborn child, he had inflicted a pain in the angel's hearts that he could have only dreamed of. He smiled evilly, proud of his work, and he watched as Anna had a violent coughing fit, before vomiting on the ground. He laughed aloud.

"What have you done to her?!" Gabriel demanded, grabbing him by the throat and rising him above the ground.

"You've seen her like this before, haven't you?" Gabriel's face fell, but the anger stayed in his eyes, and his heart. When he returned to Vaseria after leaving, Anna had been ill. "Yes." Dracula said, confirming his suspicions. "I almost had her on the brink of death, but as long as you took stupid precautions to keep her safe, I could make her no more than ill. Look at her." He did, and almost shuddered at the sight on his sick wife. "She is dying Gabriel."

"No." He said in disbelief. "NO! I won't believe you!" He pummelled Dracula with his fists, over and over until his face was covered in blood. He staggered backwards, leaning against the wall. Then he leapt at Gabriel, who, not realising the speed of Dracula, was thrown into the wall, making a large dent in the stone from the sheer force of his impact.

Dracula walked briskly over to Anna, lifting her off the ground by her throat. She could feel herself choking in his vice like grip and gasped for breath. "Did you really think that he could kill me, Anna?" He teased angrily. "Did you really think he could save you? How naïve." He said to her, she could feel the lack of oxygen to her brain and she almost passed out until she could taste the metallic liquid of blood in her mouth. _My blood_ she realised.

Summoning her last ounce of strength she spat the mouthful of blood into Dracula's face. His pale skin was layered in the thick red liquid. Steam began to rise from his face, and an unbearable burning caused him to drop Anna to the ground. She let the darkness take her, and then passed out.

Gabriel stood up in time to see Anna's blood consume the last o f his face, leaving behind his skull. His entire body writhed as he fell to the ground and burnt completely. Even the ashes of his demonic body were burning until they completely disappeared, leaving no trace of the vampire lord.

He ran over to Anna, gathering her unconscious body in his arms, supporting her head like he was holding a child. "Anna? Anna, wake up!" He pulled his jacket off and wrapped her naked body in it, keeping her warm from the icy chill that swept into the room though all of the holes in the wall his fight with Dracula had caused. Anna moaned and rolled towards him.

"Gabriel?" She whispered. She recognised his arms around her, they were loving and supporting, much unlike the grip Dracula subjected her to.

Gabriel hugged her close. "I'm here, It's alright now, we're going home." He lifted her off the ground, and let her shift into a comfortable position before taking her back through the castle, and towards their home.

**This could be the last chapter, unless you want me to continue, in your reviews tell me if you want me to carry on or stop. Once I have 5 reviews telling me which you want I will go with that one and keep posting it. I hope you liked it though please review! **


	14. Something For The Pain

Thanks to biggest amount of reviews I have ever had in one day (thanks every1!) Here is the next chapter! Hope you enjoy it.

Anna opened her eyes and looked around her. She was back in her room, in her own home. She could feel pain radiating from every inch of her body, and felt her eyes well up with tears as she remembered what Dracula did to her. She flinched with fear as the door clicked open, sitting upright, getting ready for whatever came through the door at her. When Gabriel's head appeared and he walked over to the side of the bed, she put her face in her hands and cried.

"Anna." He said softly, rushing over to his crying wife and cradling her against his chest. "It's alright. I'm here." He comforted, rubbing her back as she cried, soothing her tears until she pulled her face up to look at him.

"I thought he had come back." She told him, fearful that it was Dracula who had just entered her room. "I thought he was going to do it again." She buried her face in his chest, trying to deny what had happened. Not me, she thought. Please don't let it be true.

Gabriel sighed heavily, knowing what she was talking about. He was glad Dracula was well and truly dead, if not, he would have his put through an eternity of torture at his own hands for raping Anna. Of all the horrors Dracula had inflicted on her life, the loss of her family, and almost her own life, this was by far the worse. To make matters worse, there was still the possibility that their baby might be dead. Rachel had called out a doctor as soon as they arrived back and she had examined Anna, and would be able to tell them in a few days time whether the baby was still alive or not.

"I'm sorry that I can't take back what he did to you," Gabriel said softly, so she could only just hear him above her gentle crying, "but I promise you, I will help you through this." He buried his face in her hair as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Anything you want me to do, I'll do it."

"Megan" She muttered, between sobs. "I want to see Megan."

Gabriel closed his eyes for a moment. Anna had been home for a day and a half now, but he hadn't allowed Megan to see her mother yet, in fear of her injuries scaring the little girl. He knew that Anna, however, needed to see her daughter well to start her recovery. He hoped that seeing Megan alive would lighten her heavy heart a little. He kissed the top of her head, allowing her to sit up without leaning on him and stood up. "I'll go and get her." He told her gently.

He found Megan playing with Rachel in her bedroom. She was holding the dolls that Anna had played with as a child, and had passed down to her daughter. She had made a house scene for them using objects from her room. As Gabriel stood in the doorway, Rachel rose from the floor, her ancient bones staring to creak with age, and went over to him.

"How is she?" She asked with sincere worry. Gabriel nodded at the woman who raised the princess.

"She's awake. She wants to see Megan." Rachel glanced over at Megan with concern, also worrying about Megan being scared. Gabriel understood what she was feeling. "I know, but I can't keep them apart. They both want to see each other."

Gabriel went over and sat next to Megan. "Hey, baby. I need to talk to you about something really important." Megan put down her dolls and sat in her father's lap, facing him.

"Is it about Mommy?" She asked innocently. Gabriel nodded. "Is she alright?"

He didn't answer her directly. "She's awake now, and she wants to see you." Megan's face lit up. "But before you go in to see her, I need to understand that you have to be careful with Mommy." He told her, she looked seriously at him, showing her father that she understood what he was telling her. "She's still hurting, and she's very upset and scared. But I know what will make her feel better."

"What's that?" Megan asked him.

He ruffled her hair. "A cuddle from her little girl." He smiled. He lifted his daughter up with him as he stood up. He carried Megan into his and Anna's room, pushing the door open with his foot. He was happy to see Anna was no longer crying, but she did look very sad still.

He set Megan down on the side of the bed and sat on the edge, watching with love in his eyes as Megan crawled into Anna's lap and Anna put her arms around Megan, holding her tightly despite her pain. As much as it hurt to move even a little, she wanted her daughter in her arms more than she wanted release from the pain.

"Are you alright baby?" Anna asked her, smoothing her hair as she hugged her.

Megan nodded. "I'm fine. I was a good girl for Carl and Rachel while Daddy came to get you." She said, proud she had done what she was told when her father wanted her to, and that he hadn't had to ask her to do it four times like he would usually have to.

"Good." Anna sighed. She was scared that Dracula would have come back for Megan, but it seemed not, her daughter was alive, as was she.

"Does it hurt Mommy?" Megan asked, looking at the large fist shaped bruise on Anna's cheek. She reached out to touch it, but remembered what Gabriel said about her mother being in pain and recoiled her hand.

"A little, but don't worry about me, sweetheart. Mommy will be well again soon." She assured, though it was more a hope than a reassurance.

"Will Daddy make you better?"

Anna smiled softly at Megan's child like angelic features as her small forehead creased in worry for her mother. Anna didn't answer her, only became lost in thought in her daughters face. She remembered what her father had told her about her and Gabriel. _Megan is a true angel, _Anna realised, _our own baby angel. _Instead, Gabriel answered his daughter, thinking that Anna didn't know how to answer the little girl.

"Of course. Daddy will look after your mother. I'll make it all better." He told Megan. Megan smiled at him.

Anna could think of no other person she would want to help her body and mind heal after this event. Gabriel had saved her so many times in the past; she was yet to make it up to him, and she hoped that no matter what the future brought, she would never be in a position where his life was in the balance anyway. She realised that she had made it up to him in a different way though. In the form of a small girl, sitting in her lap, smiling at her father and mother. They had proven their love to one another by creating her, and raising her to be the angel she was. As she sat with her daughter in her arms and Gabriel within arms reach, his hand resting comfortingly on her knee, she finally realised that she would get through her ordeal with Dracula. She knew that Gabriel would help her through it, and continue to stay with her, helping her through everything life threw at them, for the rest of their lives together. And one day, in the far off future, she realised that even in death they would not be separated, for surely they would reclaim their places as Angels of Heaven.

She let a small tear fall from her eyes and into Megan's hair, though she did not feel it. Gabriel had saved her, just like he promised he would. He always kept his promised, and he had not failed to rescue her from Dracula's arms yet again.


	15. Welcome To The Good Times

Anna watched the scene before her. Megan, now a beautiful fifteen year old girl, sat cross legged on the rug with a book in her hands. She was looking more like Anna every day, which was also scary considering her taste for adventure, and inability to ignore her curiosity. She had longer hair than Anna's, letting it fall in soft rich curls down to her waist. Her eyes still glittered like she was seven years old though, showing that her youth was still full and she hadn't grown up fully.

Megan was reading the story aloud to two smaller children. Anna smiled as she watched Megan with her younger brother and sister. Danielle and Velkan were five years old now. Though Anna was misfortunate enough to loose the baby that Dracula killed, her and Gabriel had been blesses three years later with the arrival of their twins.

Velkan was a quiet boy; his blonde hair and blue eyes made him look like an angel. He only spoke when he needed to unless he was with his family and never spoke to anyone he didn't know, which made him awful to take to places. He was very well behaved and polite for a five year old, and he never ceased to amaze his parents for putting up with his sisters. He was named, for obvious reasons, after Anna's late brother.

Danielle was much louder. She was curious, much like her older sister, and tried to copy Megan in everything. She had blonde hair and blue eyes like her twin, but let her own hair grow past her shoulders, wanting it to be the same as Megan's. She was polite, like her brother, and loved riding in front of Megan on her horse when hey went for rides in the forest, whereas Velkan always stayed close to his mother.

Anna felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her waist and smiled. She leaned back against Gabriel's shoulder, resting her head there while she watched her twins listen to their sister's story wondrous expressions.

"…and they all lived happily ever after. The end." Megan finished, leaving the book open in her lap, as she looked at her brother and sister. "Well, did you like it?" She asked them.

They nodded. "It needed more fighting though." Velkan argued. He liked his action stories, liking the intensity and the drama.

"No, more love." Danielle smiled. She was the opposite with stories, liking the happy endings where the hero won his girl and rode off into the sunset.

Megan smiled to herself. She tried to think of a story that would make them both happy; One with action, one with romance, where the hero won after a desperate struggle and finally found his true love after searching everywhere for her. She looked around her for inspiration, and found herself looking at her parents as they watched her, smiling. They were bathed in sunlight looking like …

"Angels." She whispered. She turned back to the twins and got their attention once again from their squabble about the perfect story. "I've got a story with action and love in." She told them. "It isn't in the book, but I'll tell you anyway."

They moved closer to her and she told them a story her mother had told her. They watched her wide-eyed as she told them about the angels who fell in love, and built a fountain. She told them about their struggle with the devil, who separated them, and the hero went to find her, but they lost their memories, and they searched forever to find each other.

Only Anna and Gabriel knew that this was more than a bedtime story. Gabriel kissed Anna's cheek as Megan told the story, not missing out any details, after hearing the story so many times she knew it by heart. However Megan had soon grown out of hearing stories at night, and by the time the twins came along, they hardly ever seemed to stay awake long enough to hear a story of such length. Now, they guessed they would demand it again.

"Did he find her?" Velkan asked in amazement. It was the only love story he didn't pull faces at, which Anna thought as quite an achievement.

Megan nodded. "Yes, he did find her, and they lived together in a big castle for the rest of their lives, and God watched them from heaven, keeping them safe until they returned to be angels once again."

The twins stared up at her in awe as she finished her story. Anna walked over with Gabriel and sat on the floor on either side of Megan. Gabriel raised his eyebrows. "I've got a story" He told them, looking out of the window to see that the sun had set long ago and the darkness outside had reached its peak. "Once upon a time there were three children who wanted to go to Rome, but the night before they stayed up too late and they slept through the day and missed the journey."

Velkan frowned. "What kind of story is that?" He complained. "Megan's was better."

"It's a story that tells you that you have to go to bed or we won't be going to Rome tomorrow." Anna completed. She watched as the children scrambled up to their rooms, including Megan, with such speed that she half expected to see steam coming from underneath their feet as they ran.

She laughed to herself and then tried to stand up, only to be pulled back down by Gabriel. She made sure that when she fell, she landed in his lap. He wrapped her up in his arms and kissed her fully, letting their tongues dance around each other. When they broke apart, she kept her arms around his neck, holding herself close to him.

"I love you." He told her in a whisper.

She kissed him gently before replying. "I love you too."

They stayed on the floor talking about sweet happenings and their love for a while, a long while. Only when they realised that they would need some sleep before they set off Rome by horseback did they move and go up to their own room. As Anna started to rise, she was caught once again unawares by Gabriel, who swept her off her feet and carried her up the stairs and into their bedroom like they were two newlyweds. There, they lay in each others embrace and slept until dawn.

Well, that's it. Final chapter. What did everyone think of it? I loved writing it, I'm temped to write a follow up about Megan's life, but I will be concentrating on some other fics first for the Matrix trilogy and Underworld. Hope you enjoyed it!

**Sam.**

**xxx**


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